The experience of love in everyday life is diverse and complex in nature. Although some philosophers see the Universe as a plurality of minds, and recognize the levels of mind below the human soul, they realize that we can never be independent from God because our origin as humans in the creative act of God have made us able to respond to God’s love in a unique way. The Soul is a human developing part, but it is not a detached creation. Love is the measure of our faith, the inspiration for our obedience, and the true altitude of our discipleship. By loving God and doing what he wants us to do, and by loving our neighbour, we are complying with God’s law.  However, love of God and love of neighbour are quite different. Love of God is manifested by acts of obedience and worship that grow out of concern for the love of the neighbour’s need. Because love is the great commandment, it ought to be at the center of all and everything we do in our own family, in our Church callings, and in our livelihood. Love is the healing balm that repairs rifts in personal and family relationships. It is the bond that unites families, communities, and nations. There is no finer example in life than love. Love is the power that initiates friendships, tolerance, civility, and respect. It is the source that overcomes divisiveness and hate. Love is an energy that warms our lives with unparalleled joy and divine hope. Love should be our presentational continuum, an undifferentiated flux, not a partitioned series. #RandolphHarris 1 of 8

When facing complex problems, some people find themselves feeling confused, and are yearning to learn something new because they are experiencing routines as boring. In the process, individuals become worried over forgetfulness, may cling to narrow-minded ideas, lack creativity, and are longing for mental challenges. One woman was complaining she was sick of housework and feeling guilty over her lack of interest in caring for her family. A computer science engineer reported he felt overwhelmed by the amount of information coming at him. And an architect was frustrated that $1,200.00 worth of tools had been stolen from one of her farm houses under construction. These are common concerns and people are looking for answers of how they can review their lives and make changes to prevent feeling robbed. As we journey down the pathway of Mental Mastery, it is important to consider everything that can go wrong and plan for it ahead of time, look for ways to see how the products of our lives are helping those around us, and to take breaks when we need time to rest. Some people notice that their conscious attention to the details of their lives leads to better judgment in problem-solving. Others observe that activating their memory for past events expands their ability to understand their deeply rooted intellectual talents and creative gifts. When we achieve our objectives or find an unanticipated benefit, we should stop a moment to enjoy it and take the time to relish those wins. That will help more of them to come our way. #RandolphHarris 2 of 8

When we truly understand what it means to love as the Lord does, the confusion clears and our priorities align. Our walk as disciples of God becomes more joyful. Our lives take on more meaning. Agreeing with the ideal that the World is somehow a construct of the mind, we interpret the mind not as an all-inclusive absolute but as concrete, practically active human personality. There is a psychological logic of discovery that will recognize the practical impulses being the pursuit of knowledge. The World be understood only as an interrelated whole. We are bombarded with information at one thousand times the rate our grandparents were. Our senses register many thousand stimuli each day, from the way a colleague’s cologne smells to an ad for the circus to the fact that dinner will be 6.00pm at Jill and Justin’s house. Most people know that it is up to us to decide which of these bits of information to retain. (It would be nice to remember what time to show up at Jill and Justin’s, for example.)  None of us could function in daily life without the ability to filter out unwanted stimuli and focus on what is important. Like many skills, however, this skill is overdeveloped by the time most of us reach midlife. What is essential to our ability to become productive in society is now so automatic that we miss out on a lot that life has to offer. Human action can be understood only by sympathetic insight, by reliving the thoughts of others, and not by the methods of inductive science.  We have to note what it takes to life our lives the best way possible. #RandolphHarris 3 of 8

In knowledge independent objects are directly present to the mind and the mind itself is not to be contemplated, but enjoyed. The World is a process of emergent evolution in which new, higher levels of being successively develop; from the raw material of undifferentiated space time came the World of mathematical physics, from that the perceived order of sensible qualities, then life, then mind, and finally, in a time yet to come, God, conceived as the ideal goal of the whole evolutionary process. This allows our relationship with our Heavenly Father to become more profound, and obedience becomes a joy rather than a burden. God the Eternal Father did not give that first great commandment because he needed us to love him. The Lord’s power and glory are not diminished should we disregard, deny, or even defile his name. God’s influence and dominion extend through time and space independent of our acceptance, approval, or admiration. No, God does not need us to love him. But oh, how we need to love God. For what we love determines what we seek. What we seek determines what we think and do. What we think and do determines who we are—and who we will become. We are created in the image of our Heavenly parents; we are God’s spirit children. Therefore, we have a vast capacity for love—it is part of our spiritual heritage. What and how we love not only defines us as individuals; it also defines us as a community. Love is a defining characteristic of disciple of God. #RandolphHarris 4 of 8

Since the beginning of time, love has been the source of both the highest bliss and the heaviest burdens. At the heart of misery from the days of Adam until today, we will find the love of wrong things. And at the heart of joy, we will find the love of good things. And the greats of all good things is God. “We ought always to thank God for our family, loved by the Lord, because from the beginning God chose you to be saved through the sanctifying work of the Spirit and through belief in the truth,” reports 2 Thessalonians 2.13. Without the illative sense, we would not be open to the transcendent, and therefore never be open to the reality of a God who has revealed himself to us. Without this preliminary openness to God as a result of reason’s illative sense, we would not be able to put our faith in that God who has revealed himself to us. The illative sense is therefore a preamble to faith. The human experience of conscience makes it clear that we have a moral duty to concluded, based upon reason alone, that there is a divine legislator, and hence God. In a healthy self-love, the experience of relationships is a phenomenon that provides insights for the purpose of advancing power, success, emotional and gender certainty that is sometimes said to make people envious of one’s mental mastery and spiritual renewal. Our Father in Heaven has given us, his children, much more than any mortal mind can comprehend. #RandolphHarris 5 of 8

God created this wondrous World we live in. God the Father watches over us, fills our hearts with breathtaking joy, brightens our darkest hours with blessed peace, distills upon our minds precious truths, shepherds us through times of distress, rejoices when we rejoice, and answers our righteous petitions. A highly decorated Vietnam veteran, an officer of the highest caliber, who had done plenty of time in the battle, said that loving God and working on mental mastering was a source of strength and relational intimacy, a crucible for breakthrough healing. True healing happens when courage, integrity, vulnerability, compassion, awareness, and the capacity to take strong action are all functioning together. Such power is potent but not aggressive, challenging but not shaming, grounded but not rigid, forceful but not pushy. Following God requires head, heart, and guts in full-blooded alignment. This is a true hero’s journey of healing and awakening. We are connecting our past and present emotionally as well as intellectually, to understand who we are. “And now, because of their steadfastness when they do believe in that thing which they do believe, for because of their firmness when they are once enlightened, behold, the Lord shall bless them and prolong their days,” reports Helaman 15.10. It turns out that the ability to be mindful has a powerful, beneficial influence on each aspect of our lives. #RandolphHarris 6 of 8

Think of mindfulness as focused concentration, as acting on purpose or with keen awareness. When we are mindful we take no situation for granted, not even routines. Mindfulness means being vigilant, looking at what is happening from multiple angels, being open to new information and willing to revise our understanding of the way the World works. Paying attention to the comprehensive view of the World and the details of our experience is the essence of mindfulness. Being mindful in our daily life choices can increase self-knowledge while decreasing the likelihood of depression. We should reflect on the reason behind each of our choices. Did the choice we made serve our own purpose? Were we accommodating the needs of someone else? Were we acting out of habit? We also need to reflect on the consequences of each option. What impact did our choices have on us? Our Healthy? Our happiness? Our relationships? Our productivity? And based upon our brief but insightful analysis, we have to consider what choices we intend to repeat when appropriate and which ones will we replace with more useful, fulfilling alternatives?  And we should think about the wonderful things God and our intellect has done for us recently. God offers his children the promise of a glorious and infinite existence and has provided a way for us to progress in knowledge and glory until we receive a fulness of joy. The Lord has promised us all that he has. #RandolphHarris 7 of 8

Think of the purest, most all-consuming love one can imagine. Now multiply that love by an infinite amount—that is the measure of God’s love for us. God does not look on the outward appearance. He does not care one bit if we live in a castle or cottage. God does not care how attractive we are. God does not care if we are famous or a has been. Though we are incomplete, God loves us completely. Through we are imperfect, God love us perfectly. Though we may feel lost and without compass, God’s love encompasses us completely. God loves us because he is filled with an infinite measure of holy, pure, and extraordinary love. We are important to God not because of our resume, but because we are his children. He loves every one of us, even if we are misfits. God’s love is so great that he loves even the proud, the selfish, the arrogant, and the wicked. The closer we approach God, the more profoundly we experience love. However, because a veil separates this mortality from our Heavenly home, we must seek in the Spirit that which is imperceptible to mortal eyes. There is a huge need for us to take this journey out of a service to everyone. There is a deep life for us, a life in which reasonability and freedom are the same, a life in which happiness is rooted not in what we have but in what we fundamentally are. It is to such a life that the love of God is dedicated. #RandolphHarris 8 of 8